[EN] Oracle killing off the Java browser plugin

By late 2015, many browser vendors have either removed or announced timelines for the removal of standards based plugin support, eliminating the ability to embed Flash, Silverlight, Java and other plugin based technologies.

With modern browser vendors working to restrict and reduce plugin support in their products, developers of applications that rely on the Java browser plugin need to consider alternative options such as migrating from Java Applets (which rely on a browser plugin) to the plugin-free Java Web Start technology.

Oracle plans to deprecate the Java browser plugin in JDK 9. This technology will be removed from the Oracle JDK and JRE in a future Java SE release.

Early Access releases of JDK 9 are available for download and testing at http://jdk9.java.net. More background and information about different migration options can be found in this short whitepaper from Oracle.

Modern browsers don't care about Java anymore

Google removed the technology needed for Java applets in September, and Microsoft's latest Windows 10 operating system shipped with its Edge browser six months ago without support for plugins like Java.

Tom Warren
January 28, 2016

Oracle is taking the final step to rid the web of its terrible Java browser plugin. While the plugin started off life back in the '90s as an innocent way to bring app-like features to browsers, in recent years it has been a headache to users and IT admins struggling to fight against its mountain of security flaws and malware issues. Microsoft and Google have both killed off support for Java applets in Edge and Chrome, leaving Internet Explorer and Safari as the only alternatives for people who really need Java applications in their browser.

Google removed the technology needed for Java applets in September, and Microsoft's latest Windows 10 operating system shipped with its Edge browser six months ago without support for plugins like Java. Mozilla has announced plans to remove support for plugins like Silverlight and Java in Firefox by the end of the year. Oracle is now planning to deprecate the Java browser plugin in its JDK 9 release due in September.

It's hard to say exactly when Java browser plugins will fully disappear, but if you're using a modern web browser like Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome then you're already one step ahead. Businesses who still rely on Java browser plugins will be able to continue using them in compatible browsers for the short-term, but Oracle is providing them with a big warning that this is the final nail in the coffin of its Java browser plugin.